Sugar in fruit juice ‘as bad as fizzy cola’ and is linked to diabetes

FRUIT juice could be as bad for you as fizzy drinks, according to experts.

Fruit juice contains the sugars of whole fruit but without the goodness of the fibre [GETTY]

And researchers say it puts people at an increased risk of developing diabetes.

Now they are calling for fruit juice labels to make it clear that consumers should drink no more than 150 millilitres a day.

Professor Naveed Sattar and Dr Jason Gill, from the University of Glasgow’s Institute of Cardiovascular and Medical Sciences, are also recommending a change to the current “five-a-day” guidelines.

They want the five fruit and vegetable servings to no longer include a portion of fruit juice as an option.

Dr Gill said: “As a population we are getting fatter and we need to think of ways to reduce the amount of energy and liquid calories that we consume because this can lead to a higher chance of diabetes.

“Broadly speaking the sugar contents in fruit juices are similar to those found in colas and similar drinks.”

As a population we are getting fatter and we need to think of ways to reduce the amount of energy and liquid calories that we consume because this can lead to a higher chance of diabetes

Dr Jason Gill

Writing in The Lancet Diabetes and Endocrinology journal, Prof Sattar said one glass of fruit juice contains more sugar than a piece of fruit.

In addition, much of the goodness in fruit – fibre, for example – is not found in fruit juice, or is there in far smaller amounts.

In one scientific trial, drinking half a litre of grape juice per day for three months actually increased insulin resistance and waist circumference in overweight adults.

The debate around fruit juice comes as medical experts are focusing more closely on the link between high sugar consumption and the risk of heart disease.